Apparatus and methods for dynamic management of antenna arrays

ABSTRACT

Apparatus and methods for dynamic management of antenna arrays are provided herein. In certain configurations, a radio frequency (RF) system includes an antenna array including a plurality of antenna elements. The RF system further includes a plurality of signal conditioning circuits operatively associated with the antenna elements, and an antenna array management circuit that generates a plurality of enable signals that individually control activation of the signal conditioning circuits to dynamically manage the antenna array. The array of antenna elements can be dynamically managed to control a trade-off between power consumption, off-beam capture, and communication range/rate.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/862,471, filed Apr. 29, 2020 and titled “APPARATUS AND METHODS FORDYNAMIC MANAGEMENT OF ANTENNA ARRAYS” which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/834,419, filed Dec. 7, 2017 and titled“APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR DYNAMIC MANAGEMENT OF ANTENNA ARRAYS” whichclaims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 of U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application No. 62/437,502, filed Dec. 21, 2016 and titled“APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR DYNAMIC MANAGEMENT OF ANTENNA ARRAYS,” and ofU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/433,493, filed Dec. 13, 2016and titled “APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR DYNAMIC MANAGEMENT OF ANTENNAARRAYS,” each of which is herein incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

Embodiments of the invention relate to electronic systems, and inparticular, to radio frequency (RF) electronics.

Description of Related Technology

A radio frequency (RF) communication system can include a transceiver, afront end, and one or more antennas for wirelessly transmitting and/orreceiving signals. The front end can include low noise amplifier(s) foramplifying relatively weak signals received via the antenna(s), andpower amplifier(s) for boosting signals for transmission via theantenna(s).

Examples of RF communication systems include, but are not limited to,mobile phones, tablets, base stations, network access points,customer-premises equipment (CPE), laptops, and wearable electronics.

SUMMARY

In certain embodiments, the present disclosure relates to a radiofrequency system. The radio frequency system includes an antenna arrayincluding a plurality of antenna elements, a plurality of signalconditioning circuits, each signal conditioning circuit operativelyassociated with a corresponding one of the plurality of antennaelements, and an antenna array management circuit configured to generatea plurality of enable signals each operable to individually controlactivation of a corresponding one of the plurality of signalconditioning circuits so as to dynamically manage the antenna array.

In some embodiments, the plurality of enable signals are operable toorchestrate engagement of each of the plurality of antenna elements ofthe antenna array to thereby control a pattern of active antennaelements. In accordance with several embodiments, the plurality ofenable signals are operable to control an amount of beam focus of theantenna array to thereby control a trade-off between a communicationrange of the antenna array and an off-beam capture of the antenna array.

In various embodiments, each of the plurality of signal conditioningcircuits includes a power amplifier, the radio frequency system furtherincluding a power amplifier output tuning control circuit configured totune an output impedance of each power amplifier based on the pluralityof enable signals.

In several embodiments, each of the plurality of signal conditioningcircuits includes a low noise amplifier, the radio frequency systemfurther including a low noise amplifier input tuning control circuitconfigured to tune an input impedance of each low noise amplifier basedon the plurality of enable signals.

In some embodiments, the antenna array management circuit controls astate of the plurality of enable signals based on one or more inputsindicative of a communication link of the antenna array. According to anumber of embodiments, the one or more inputs includes at least one ofan achieved data rate of the communication link, an observed error rateof the communication link, a receive signal strength indicator, or anindicator of geo-positioning.

In certain embodiments herein, the present disclosure relates to amodule for a communications device. The module includes a laminatedsubstrate, an antenna array formed on the laminated substrate, theantenna array including a plurality of antenna elements, and asemiconductor die attached to the laminated substrate and including aplurality of signal conditioning circuits. Each signal conditioningcircuit is operatively associated with a corresponding one of theplurality of antenna elements. The semiconductor die further includes anantenna array management circuit configured to generate a plurality ofenable signals each operable to individually control activation of acorresponding one of the plurality of signal conditioning circuits so asto dynamically manage the antenna array.

In some embodiments, the plurality of enable signals are operable toorchestrate engagement of each of the plurality of antenna elements ofthe antenna array to thereby control a pattern of active antennaelements of the antenna array. In accordance with several embodiments,the plurality of enable signals are operable to control an amount ofbeam focus of the antenna array to thereby control a trade-off between acommunication range of the antenna array and an off-beam capture of theantenna array.

In various embodiments, each of the plurality of signal conditioningcircuits includes a power amplifier, the semiconductor die furtherincluding a power amplifier output tuning control circuit configured totune an output impedance of each power amplifier based on the pluralityof enable signals.

In a number of embodiments, each of the plurality of signal conditioningcircuits includes a low noise amplifier, the semiconductor die furtherincluding a low noise amplifier input tuning control circuit configuredto tune an input impedance of each low noise amplifier based on theplurality of enable signals.

In accordance with some embodiments, the antenna array managementcircuit controls a state of the plurality of enable signals based on oneor more inputs indicative of a communication link of the antenna array.According to several embodiments, the one or more inputs includes atleast one of an achieved data rate of the communication link, anobserved error rate of the communication link, a receive signal strengthindicator, or an indicator of geo-positioning.

In a number of embodiments, the antenna array is formed on a firstsurface of the laminated substrate, and the semiconductor die isattached to a second surface of the laminated substrate opposite thefirst surface.

In several embodiments, the semiconductor die is attached to a majorsurface of the laminated substrate, and the antenna array includes aplurality of cavity-based antennas along an edge of the laminatedsubstrate.

In certain embodiments herein, the present disclosure relates to amethod of antenna array management. The method includes using aplurality of antenna elements of an antenna array for wirelesslycommunicating a plurality of radio frequency signals, the antenna arrayincluding a plurality of antenna elements each thereof wirelesslycommunicating a corresponding one of the plurality of radio frequencysignals. The method further includes conditioning the plurality of radiofrequency signals of the plurality of antenna elements using a pluralityof signal conditioning circuits each thereof associated with arespective one of the plurality of radio frequency signals, generating aplurality of enable signals using an antenna array management circuit,and dynamically managing the antenna array by individually controllingactivation of each of the plurality of signal conditioning circuitsusing a corresponding one of the plurality of enable signals.

In some embodiments, dynamically managing the antenna array includesusing the plurality of enable signals to orchestrate the engagement ofeach of the plurality of antenna elements of the antenna array tothereby control a pattern of active antenna elements of the antennaarray.

In several embodiments, the method further includes tuning an outputimpedance of a power amplifier of each of the plurality of signalconditioning circuits based on the pattern of active elements.

In a number of embodiments, the method further includes tuning an inputimpedance of a low noise amplifier of each of the plurality of signalconditioning circuits based on the pattern of active elements.

In certain embodiments herein, the present disclosure relates to a radiofrequency system. The radio frequency system includes an antenna arrayincluding a plurality of antenna elements, a plurality of signalconditioning circuits operatively associated with the plurality ofantenna elements, and a transceiver configured to generate a pluralityof enable signals operable to individually control activation of theplurality of signal conditioning circuits so as to dynamically managethe antenna array.

In several embodiments, the plurality of enable signals are operable toorchestrate the engagement of each of the plurality of antenna elementsof the antenna array.

In a number of embodiments, each of the plurality of enable signalscontrols whether or not a corresponding antenna element of the antennaarray radiates.

In some embodiments, the plurality of enable signals control a trade-offbetween a number of active antenna elements of the antenna array and apower consumption to energize the antenna array.

In accordance with various embodiments, the plurality of enable signalscontrol an amount of beam focus of the antenna array. According to anumber of embodiments, the plurality of enable signals further control atrade-off between a communication range of the antenna array and anoff-beam capture of the antenna array.

In some embodiments, each of the plurality of signal conditioningcircuits include at least one of a power amplifier or a low noiseamplifier.

In several embodiments, the plurality of antenna elements includes aplurality of patch antenna elements.

According to various embodiments, the transceiver is further configuredto provide a plurality of transmit signals to the plurality of signalconditioning circuits.

In some embodiments, the transceiver is further configured to receive aplurality of receive signals from the plurality of signal conditioningcircuits.

In accordance with several embodiments, the transceiver is furtherconfigured to both provide a plurality of transmit signals to theplurality of signal conditioning circuits, and to receive a plurality ofreceive signals from the plurality of signal conditioning circuits.

In various embodiments, the transceiver is operable to routinely updatea selection of activated signal conditioning circuits based on asignaling environment of the radio frequency system.

In accordance with some embodiments, the transceiver includes an antennamanagement circuit that controls a selection of activated signalconditioning circuits based on one or more inputs indicative of acommunication link of the antenna array. According to a number ofembodiments, one or more inputs includes an achieved data rate of thecommunication link. In accordance with several embodiments, the one ormore inputs includes an observed error rate of the communication link.According to various embodiments, the one or more inputs includes areceive signal strength indicator. In accordance with severalembodiments, the one or more inputs includes an indicator ofgeo-positioning.

In certain embodiments herein, the present disclosure relates to amodule for a communications device. The module includes a laminate, anantenna array formed on a first surface of the laminate and including aplurality of antenna elements, and one or more semiconductor dies on asecond surface of the laminate opposite the first surface. The one ormore semiconductor dies include a plurality of signal conditioningcircuits operatively associated with the plurality of antenna elements,and an antenna array management circuit configured to generate aplurality of enable signals operable to individually control activationof the plurality of signal conditioning circuits so as to dynamicallymanage the antenna array.

In some embodiments, the plurality of enable signals are operable toorchestrate the engagement of each of the plurality of antenna elementsof the antenna array.

In a number of embodiments, each of the plurality of enable signalscontrols whether or not a corresponding antenna element of the antennaarray radiates.

In several embodiments, the plurality of enable signals control atrade-off between a number of active antenna elements of the antennaarray and a power consumption to energize the antenna array.

In accordance with some embodiments, the plurality of enable signalscontrol an amount of beam focus of the antenna array. According tovarious embodiments, the plurality of enable signals further control atrade-off between a communication range of the antenna array and anoff-beam capture of the antenna array.

In a number of embodiments, each of the plurality of signal conditioningcircuits include at least one of a power amplifier or a low noiseamplifier.

In various embodiments, the plurality of antenna elements includes aplurality of patch antenna elements.

In several embodiments, the module further includes a transceiver thatincludes the antenna array management circuit.

In accordance with a number of embodiments, the transceiver is furtherconfigured to provide a plurality of transmit signals to the pluralityof signal conditioning circuits.

In some embodiments, the transceiver is further configured to receive aplurality of receive signals from the plurality of signal conditioningcircuits.

In various embodiments, the transceiver is further configured to bothprovide a plurality of transmit signals to the plurality of signalconditioning circuits, and to receive a plurality of receive signalsfrom the plurality of signal conditioning circuits.

In several embodiments, the transceiver is operable to routinely updatea selection of activated signal conditioning circuits based on asignaling environment.

In a number of embodiments, the antenna management circuit controls aselection of activated signal conditioning circuits based on one or moreinputs indicative of a communication link of the antenna array. Inaccordance with some embodiments, the one or more inputs includes anachieved data rate of the communication link. According to severalembodiments, the one or more inputs includes an observed error rate ofthe communication link. In accordance with various embodiments, the oneor more inputs includes a receive signal strength indicator. Accordingto some embodiments, the one or more inputs includes an indicator ofgeo-positioning.

In certain embodiments, the present disclosure relates to a method ofantenna array management. The method includes using a plurality ofantenna elements of an antenna array for at least one of transmittingsignals or receiving signals, conditioning the signals of the pluralityof antenna elements using a plurality of signal conditioning circuits,generating a plurality of enable signals using an antenna arraymanagement circuit, and dynamically managing the antenna array byindividually controlling activation of the plurality of signalconditioning circuits using the plurality of enable signals.

In some embodiments, dynamically managing the antenna array includesusing the plurality of enable signals to orchestrate the engagement ofeach of the plurality of antenna elements of the antenna array.

In various embodiments, dynamically managing the antenna array includesusing the plurality of enable signals to control whether or not each ofthe plurality of antenna elements of the antenna array radiates.

In a number of embodiments, the method further includes controlling atradeoff between a number of active antenna elements of the antennaarray and a power consumption to energize the antenna array using theplurality of enable signals.

In several embodiments, the method further includes controlling anamount of beam focus of the antenna array using the plurality of enablesignals.

According to various embodiments, the method further includescontrolling a trade-off between a communication range of the antennaarray and an off-beam capture of the antenna array using the pluralityof enable signals.

In a number of embodiments, the method further includes deactivating oneor more antenna elements to defocus the antenna array to enablecommunications with an off-beam device.

In some embodiments, the method further includes controlling a selectionof activated signal conditioning circuits based on one or more inputsindicative of a communication link of the antenna array. In accordancewith several embodiments, the one or more inputs includes an achieveddata rate of the communication link. According to a number ofembodiments, the one or more inputs includes an observed error rate ofthe communication link. In accordance with various embodiments, the oneor more inputs includes a receive signal strength indicator. Accordingto several embodiments, the one or more inputs includes an indicator ofgeo-positioning.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of this disclosure will now be described, by way ofnon-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of one example of a communication network.

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a radio frequency(RF) system with dynamic antenna array management.

FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF systemwith dynamic antenna array management.

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF systemwith dynamic antenna array management.

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of one example of beamforming to providea transmit beam.

FIG. 3C is a schematic diagram of one example of beamforming to providea receive beam.

FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF systemwith dynamic antenna array management.

FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF systemwith dynamic antenna array management.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF system withdynamic antenna array management.

FIGS. 6A-6C are schematic diagrams of three examples of activatedantenna elements of an antenna array.

FIG. 7A is a perspective view of one embodiment of a module with dynamicantenna array management.

FIG. 7B is a cross-section of the module of FIG. 7A taken along thelines 7B-7B.

FIG. 8A is a schematic diagram of one example of a wireless network.

FIG. 8B is schematic diagram of another example of a wireless network.

FIG. 9A is a schematic diagram of an RF system with dynamic antennaarray management and power amplifier output tuning compensationaccording to one embodiment.

FIG. 9B is a schematic diagram of one example of a tunable poweramplifier.

FIG. 9C is a schematic diagram of another example of a tunable poweramplifier.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an RF system with dynamic antennaarray management and low noise amplifier input tuning compensationaccording to one embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a mobile device 800.

FIG. 12A is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a packaged module.

FIG. 12B is a schematic diagram of a cross-section of the packagedmodule of FIG. 12A taken along the lines 12B-12B.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a cross-section of another embodimentof a packaged module.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of a module withdynamic antenna array management.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description of certain embodiments presentsvarious descriptions of specific embodiments. However, the innovationsdescribed herein can be embodied in a multitude of different ways, forexample, as defined and covered by the claims. In this description,reference is made to the drawings where like reference numerals canindicate identical or functionally similar elements. It will beunderstood that elements illustrated in the figures are not necessarilydrawn to scale. Moreover, it will be understood that certain embodimentscan include more elements than illustrated in a drawing and/or a subsetof the elements illustrated in a drawing. Further, some embodiments canincorporate any suitable combination of features from two or moredrawings.

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is a specialized agencyof the United Nations (UN) responsible for global issues concerninginformation and communication technologies, including the shared globaluse of radio spectrum.

The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is a collaboration betweengroups of telecommunications standard bodies across the world, such asthe Association of Radio Industries and Businesses (ARIB), theTelecommunications Technology Committee (TTC), the China CommunicationsStandards Association (CCSA), the Alliance for TelecommunicationsIndustry Solutions (ATIS), the Telecommunications Technology Association(TTA), the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), andthe Telecommunications Standards Development Society, India (TSDSI).

Working within the scope of the ITU, 3GPP develops and maintainstechnical specifications for a variety of mobile communicationtechnologies, including, for example, second generation (2G) technology(for instance, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) andEnhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE)), third generation (3G)technology (for instance, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System(UMTS) and High Speed Packet Access (HSPA)), and fourth generation (4G)technology (for instance, Long Term Evolution (LTE) and LTE-Advanced).

The technical specifications controlled by 3GPP can be expanded andrevised by specification releases, which can span multiple years andspecify a breadth of new features and evolutions.

In one example, 3GPP introduced carrier aggregation (CA) for LTE inRelease 10. Although initially introduced with two downlink carriers,3GPP expanded carrier aggregation in Release 14 to include up to fivedownlink carriers and up to three uplink carriers. Other examples of newfeatures and evolutions provided by 3GPP releases include, but are notlimited to, License Assisted Access (LAA), enhanced LAA (eLAA),Narrowband Internet-of-Things (NB-IOT), Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), andHigh Power User Equipment (HPUE).

3GPP plans to introduce Phase 1 of fifth generation (5G) technology inRelease 15 (targeted for 2018) and Phase 2 of 5G technology in Release16 (targeted for 2019). Release 15 is anticipated to address 5Gcommunications at less than 6 gigahertz (GHz), while Release 16 isanticipated to address communications at 6 GHz and higher. Subsequent3GPP releases will further evolve and expand 5G technology. 5Gtechnology is also referred to herein as 5G New Radio (NR).

Preliminary specifications for 5G NR support a variety of features, suchas communications over millimeter wave spectrum, beam formingcapability, high spectral efficiency waveforms, low latencycommunications, multiple radio numerology, and/or non-orthogonalmultiple access (NOMA). Although such RF functionalities offerflexibility to networks and enhance user data rates, supporting suchfeatures can pose a number of technical challenges.

The teachings herein are applicable to a wide variety of communicationsystems, including, but not limited to, communication systems usingadvanced cellular technologies, such as LTE-Advanced, LTE-Advanced Pro,and/or 5G NR.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of one example of a communication network1. The communication network 1 includes a macro cell base station 11, asmall cell base station 13, and various examples of user equipment (UE),including a first mobile device 12 a, a wireless-connected car 12 b, alaptop 12 c, a stationary wireless device 12 d, a wireless-connectedtrain 12 e, and a second mobile device 12 f.

Although specific examples of base stations and user equipment areillustrated in FIG. 1, a communication network can include base stationsand user equipment of a wide variety of types and/or numbers.

For instance, in the example shown, the communication network 1 includesthe macro cell base station 11 and the small cell base station 13. Thesmall cell base station 13 can operate with relatively lower power,shorter range, and/or with fewer concurrent users relative to the macrocell base station 11. The small cell base station 13 can also bereferred to as a femtocell, a picocell, or a microcell. Although thecommunication network 1 is illustrated as including two base stations,the communication network 1 can be implemented to include more or fewerbase stations and/or base stations of other types.

Although various examples of user equipment are shown, the teachingsherein are applicable to a wide variety of user equipment, including,but not limited to, mobile phones, tablets, laptops, IoT devices,wearable electronics, customer premises equipment (CPE),wireless-connected vehicles, wireless relays, and/or a wide variety ofother communication devices.

The illustrated communication network 1 of FIG. 1 supportscommunications using a variety of technologies, including, for example,4G LTE, 5G NR, and wireless local area network (WLAN), such as Wi-Fi.Although various examples of communication technologies have beenprovided, the communication network 1 can be adapted to support a widevariety of communication technologies.

Various communication links of the communication network 1 have beendepicted in FIG. 1. The communication links can be duplexed in a widevariety of ways, including, for example, using frequency-divisionduplexing (FDD) and/or time-division duplexing (TDD). FDD is a type ofradio frequency communications that uses different frequencies fortransmitting and receiving signals. FDD can provide a number ofadvantages, such as high data rates and low latency. In contrast, TDD isa type of radio frequency communications that uses about the samefrequency for transmitting and receiving signals, and in which transmitand receive communications are switched in time. TDD can provide anumber of advantages, such as efficient use of spectrum and variableallocation of throughput between transmit and receive directions.

In certain implementations, user equipment can communication with a basestation using one or more of 4G LTE, 5G NR, and Wi-Fi technologies. Incertain implementations, enhanced license assisted access (eLAA) is usedto aggregate one or more licensed frequency carriers (for instance,licensed 4G LTE and/or 5G NR frequencies), with one or more unlicensedcarriers (for instance, unlicensed Wi-Fi frequencies).

The communication links can operate over a wide variety of frequencies.In certain implementations, communications are supported using 5G NRtechnology over one or more frequency bands that are less than 6Gigahertz (GHz) and/or over one or more frequency bands that are greaterthan 6 GHz. In one embodiment, one or more of the mobile devices supporta HPUE power class specification.

In certain implementations, a base station and/or user equipmentcommunicates using beamforming. For example, beamforming can be used tofocus signal strength to overcome path losses, such as high lossassociated with communicating over high signal frequencies. In certainembodiments, user equipment, such as one or more mobile phones,communicate using beamforming on millimeter wave frequency bands in therange of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and/or upper centimeter wave frequencies inthe range of 6 GHz to 30 GHz, or more particularly, 24 GHz to 30 GHz.

Different users of the communication network 1 can share availablenetwork resources, such as available frequency spectrum, in a widevariety of ways.

In one example, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) is used todivide a frequency band into multiple frequency carriers. Additionally,one or more carriers are allocated to a particular user. Examples ofFDMA include, but are not limited to, single carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) andorthogonal FDMA (OFDMA). OFDM is a multicarrier technology thatsubdivides the available bandwidth into multiple mutually orthogonalnarrowband subcarriers, which can be separately assigned to differentusers.

Other examples of shared access include, but are not limited to, timedivision multiple access (TDMA) in which a user is allocated particulartime slots for using a frequency resource, code division multiple access(CDMA) in which a frequency resource is shared amongst different usersby assigning each user a unique code, space-divisional multiple access(SDMA) in which beamforming is used to provide shared access by spatialdivision, and non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) in which the powerdomain is used for multiple access. For example, NOMA can be used toserve multiple users at the same frequency, time, and/or code, but withdifferent power levels.

Enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) refers to technology for growing systemcapacity of LTE networks. For example, eMBB can refer to communicationswith a peak data rate of at least 10 Gbps and a minimum of 100 Mbps foreach user. Ultra-reliable low latency communications (uRLLC) refers totechnology for communication with very low latency, for instance, lessthan 2 milliseconds. uRLLC can be used for mission-criticalcommunications such as for autonomous driving and/or remote surgeryapplications. Massive machine-type communications (mMTC) refers to lowcost and low data rate communications associated with wirelessconnections to everyday objects, such as those associated with Internetof Things (IoT) applications.

The communication network 1 of FIG. 1 can be used to support a widevariety of advanced communication features, including, but not limitedto, eMBB, uRLLC, and/or mMTC.

Examples of Dynamic Management of Antenna Arrays

Antenna arrays, such as patch antenna arrays, can be used in a widevariety of applications. In one example, an antenna array is included ona module of a communications device. For instance, antenna arrays can beused to transmit and/or receive radio frequency (RF) signals in basestations, network access points, mobile phones, tablets, laptops,computers, and/or other communications devices. Moreover, in certainimplementations, separate antenna arrays are deployed for transmissionand reception.

Communications devices that utilize millimeter wave carriers (forinstance, 30 GHz to 300 GHz), centimeter wave carriers (for instance, 3GHz to 30 GHz), and/or other carrier frequencies can employ an antennaarray to provide beam formation and directivity for transmission and/orreception of signals. For example, in the context of signaltransmission, an antenna array of m×n patch antenna elements (forinstance, a 4×4 array) can be implemented in a planar module with eachantenna element of the array radiating signals independently.Additionally, the signals from the antenna elements combine usingconstructive and destructive interference to generate an aggregatetransmit signal exhibiting beam-like qualities with more signal strengthpropagating in a given direction away from the antenna array.

In the context of signal reception, more signal energy is received bythe antenna array when the signal is arriving from a particulardirection. Accordingly, an antenna array can also provide directivityfor reception of signals.

The relative concentration of signal energy into a beam can be enhancedby increasing the size of the array, up to a limit. For example, withmore signal energy focused into a transmitted beam, the signal is ableto propagate for a longer range while providing sufficient signal levelfor RF communications. For instance, a signal with a large proportion ofsignal energy focused into the transmitted beam can exhibit higheffective isotropic radiated power (ERP).

A signal conditioning circuit can be used to condition a transmit signalfor transmission via an antenna element and/or to condition a receivedsignal from the antenna element. In one example, a signal conditioningcircuit includes a power amplifier that amplifies the transmit signal toa power level suitable for transmission, and a low noise amplifier (LNA)that amplifies the received signal for further processing whileintroducing a relatively small amount of noise.

The signal conditioning circuits of a communications device consumepower when activated. Thus, electronic circuitry that supports eachantenna element of an array consumes power to function. For instance,when each antenna element transmits with the same signal power, an arrayof antenna 16 elements consumes more power than an array of 4 elements.

Accordingly, there is a trade-off between the size of the array and thepower consumption to energize the array. Moreover, using a larger arrayincreases the amount of beam focus, and thus a receiver that is notsufficiently close to the center of the beam may not be able to receiveenough signal strength to enable communications. Accordingly, there isan additional trade-off between the degree of signal focus correspondingto the size of array deployed and the ability of the communicationchannel to communicate with other devices that are not in the beam path.

Apparatus and methods for dynamic management of antenna arrays areprovided herein. In certain configurations, an RF system includes anantenna array including a plurality of antenna elements. The RF systemfurther includes a plurality of signal conditioning circuits operativelyassociated with the antenna elements, and an antenna array managementcircuit that generates a plurality of enable signals that individuallycontrol activation of the signal conditioning circuits to dynamicallymanage the antenna array.

Accordingly, an array of antenna elements can be dynamically managed tocontrol a trade-off between power consumption, off-beam capture, andcommunication range/rate. For example, the number of active antennaelements can be dynamically controlled to provide an antenna rangesuitable for a given operating environment at a given time. For example,with respect to an m×n antenna array, all m*n antenna elements can beused at one time instance, while less than all elements (for instance,inner antenna elements of the array) can be used when the target isrelatively close. When less than all of the antenna elements are beingused, the signal conditioning circuits of inactive antenna elements canbe disabled to reduce system power.

In certain implementations, the transceiver includes an antenna arraymanagement circuit that controls a state of the enable signals based onone or more inputs indicative of a communication link between theantenna array and another communications device. Thus, the antenna arraymanagement circuit is used to control which of the signal conditioningcircuits are active and a corresponding pattern of active antennaelements of the antenna array.

Dynamic management and optimization of the array usage when transmittingand/or receiving can be based on a number of signaling factors and/orfeedback signals indicative of the communication link. Examples ofsuitable inputs to the antenna array management circuit include datarate achieved between the communications devices, error rates, receivesignal strength indicators, and/or geo-positioning of one communicationsdevice relative to the other communications device (and therebyproximity).

The antenna arrays herein can be used to transmit and/or receive signalsof a wide range of frequencies, including, for example, a frequencyrange of about 30 kHz to 300 GHz, such as in the range of about 500 MHzto about 20 GHz for certain communications standards.

In certain embodiments, the antenna array is implemented on a laminatedsubstrate, with an array of planar antenna elements formed using apatterned conductive layer on a first side of the laminated substrate.Additionally, a ground plane is formed using a conductive layer on asecond opposing side of the laminated substrate or internal to thelaminated substrate.

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of an RF system 10 withdynamic antenna array management. The RF system 10 includes an antennaarray 2 including antenna elements 3 a, 3 b . . . 3 m. The RF system 10further includes signal conditioning circuits 4 a, 4 b . . . 4 m, and atransceiver 5 that includes an antenna array management circuit 6.

Although an embodiment with three antenna elements and correspondingsignal conditioning circuits is shown, an RF system can more or fewerantenna elements and/or signal conditioning circuits as indicated by theellipses.

In the illustrated embodiment, each signal conditioning circuit 4 a, 4 b. . . 4 m is coupled to a corresponding one of the antenna elements 3 a,3 b . . . 3 m. The signal conditioning circuits can be used to conditionsignals for transmission and/or reception via the antenna array 2.

Although an embodiment in which the conditioning circuits 4 a, 4 b . . .4 m provide signal conditioning for both transmission and reception,other implementations are possible. For example, in certainimplementations, a communications device includes separate arrays forreceiving signals and for transmitting signals. Thus, in certainimplementations, a signal conditioning circuit is used for transmitconditioning but not receive conditioning, or for receive conditioningbut not transmit conditioning.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the transceiver generates enable signals EN₁, EN₂ .. . EN_(m) for individually controlling activation of the signalconditioning circuits 4 a, 4 b . . . 4 m, respectively.

Accordingly, the transceiver 5 dynamically manages the antenna array 2by selectively enabling the signaling conditioning circuits 4 a, 4 b . .. 4 m. By controlling the number and pattern of active antenna elements,the shape of the beam is controlled. Thus, the transceiver 5 controls atrade-off between power consumption, off-beam capture, and RFcommunication range/rate.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the transceiver 5 includes the antenna arraymanagement circuit 6, which controls the active antenna elements of theantenna array 2 based on a given operating environment at a given time.The particular antenna elements activated by the transceiver 5 changeover time, and thus the transceiver 5 reconfigures the antenna array 2to provide desired performance characteristics at a given moment.

For example, the state of the enable signals EN₁, EN₂ . . . EN_(m) canbe controlled to provide an optimal or near-optimal beam for a givenoperating environment at a given time. Thus, seamless connectivitybetween a pair of communications devices can be provided as the devicesmove relative to one another and/or a signaling environment changes.

The antenna array management circuit 6 receives one or more inputs usedto control selection of a state of the enable signals EN₁, EN₂ . . .EN_(m). The inputs can include a number of signaling factors and/orfeedback signals indicative of a communication link (transmit and/orreceive) of the antenna array 2. Examples of suitable inputs to theantenna array management circuit include a data rate achieved, anobserved error rate, a receive signal strength indicator (RSSI), and/oran indicator of geo-positioning. Accordingly, the inputs can includesignals and/or parameters received from another device in which the RFsystem 10 is in communication with.

In the illustrated embodiment, the antenna array management circuit 6controls the enable signals EN₁, EN₂ . . . EN_(m) to focus/de-focus thebeam of the antenna array 2. Thus, not only do the enable signals EN₁,EN₂ . . . EN_(m) control a trade-off between a number of active antennaelements and a power consumption to energize the antenna array 2, butalso a trade-off between a communication range of the antenna array 2and an off-beam capture of the antenna array 2.

FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF system 20with dynamic antenna array management. The RF system 20 includes anantenna array 2, signal conditioning circuits 15 a, 15 b . . . 15 m, anda transceiver 5.

The RF system 20 of FIG. 2A is similar to the RF system 10 of FIG. 2B,except that the RF system 20 includes a specific implementation ofsignal conditioning circuits. In particular, the signaling conditionscircuits 15 a, 15 b . . . 15 m of FIG. 2B include power amplifiers 17 a,17 b . . . 17 m and LNAs 18 a, 18 b . . . 18 m, respectively.

Although an example of signaling conditioning circuits with poweramplifiers and LNAs is shown, other implementations of signalingconditioning circuits are possible. For example, a signalingconditioning circuit can include other circuitry used to enable theintended RF communication channel between devices, including, but notlimited to, filters, attenuators, phase shifters, switches, and/or othercircuitry. Moreover, in certain implementations, a signalingconditioning circuit includes transmit conditioning circuitry (forinstance, a power amplifier) but not receive conditioning circuitry, orincludes receive conditioning circuitry (for instance, an LNA) but nottransmit conditioning circuitry.

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF system 50with dynamic antenna array management. The RF system 50 includes anantenna array 32 including antenna elements 3 a 1, 3 a 2 . . . 3 an, 3 b1, 3 b 2 . . . 3 bn, 3 m 1, 3 m 2 . . . 3 mn. The RF system 50 furtherincludes signal conditioning circuits 4 a 1, 4 a 2 . . . 4 an, 4 b 1, 4b 2 . . . 4 bn, 4 m 1, 4 m 2 . . . 4 mn. The RF system 50 furtherincludes a transceiver 45 that generates enable signals EN_(1,1),EN_(1,2) . . . EN_(1,n), EN_(2,1), EN_(2,2) . . . EN_(2,n), EN_(m,1),EN_(m,2) . . . EN_(m,n) for the signal conditioning circuits 4 a 1, 4 a2 . . . 4 an, 4 b 1, 4 b 2 . . . 4 bn, 4 m 1, 4 m 2 . . . 4 mn,respectively.

The RF system 50 of FIG. 3A is similar to the RF system 10 of FIG. 2A,except that the RF system 50 illustrates a specific implementation usingan m×n antenna array 32 and corresponding signal conditioning circuits,where m and n are integers greater than or equal to 1. The product ofm*n can vary depending on application. In one embodiment, m*n is in therange of 2 to 2048, or more particular, 16 to 256.

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of one example of beamforming to providea transmit beam. FIG. 3B illustrates a portion of a communication systemincluding a first signal conditioning circuit 44 a, a second signalconditioning circuit 44 b, a first antenna element 23 a, and a secondantenna element 23 b.

Although illustrated as included two antenna elements and two signalconditioning circuits, a communication system can include additionalantenna elements and/or signal conditioning circuits. For example, FIG.3B illustrates one embodiment of a portion of the communication system50 of FIG. 3A.

The first signal conditioning circuit 44 a includes a first poweramplifier 51 a, a first low noise amplifier (LNA) 52 a, a first phaseshifter 53 a, and switches for controlling selection of the poweramplifier 51 a or LNA 52 a. Additionally, the second signal conditioningcircuit 44 b includes a second power amplifier 51 b, a second LNA 52 b,a second phase shifter 53 b, and switches for controlling selection ofthe power amplifier 51 b or LNA 52 b.

Although one embodiment of signal conditioning circuits is shown, otherimplementations of signal conditioning circuits are possible. Forinstance, in one example, a signal conditioning circuit includes one ormore band filters, duplexers, and/or other components. Furthermore,although an implementation with an analog phase shifter is shown, theteachings herein are also applicable to implementations using digitalphase shifting (for instance, phase shifting using digital basebandprocessing) as well as to implementations using a combination of analogphase shifting and digital phase shifting.

In the illustrated embodiment, the first antenna element 23 a and thesecond antenna element 23 b are separated by a distance d. Additionally,FIG. 3B has been annotated with an angle θ, which in this example has avalue of about 90 when the transmit beam direction is substantiallyperpendicular to a plane of the antenna array and a value of about 0°when the transmit beam direction is substantially parallel to the planeof the antenna array.

By controlling the relative phase of the transmit signals provided tothe antenna elements 23 a, 23 b, a desired transmit beam angle θ can beachieved. For example, when the first phase shifter 53 a has a referencevalue of 0°, the second phase shifter 53 b can be controlled to providea phase shift of about −2πf(d/v)cos θ radians, where f is thefundamental frequency of the transmit signal, d is the distance betweenthe antenna elements, v is the velocity of the radiated wave, and π isthe mathematic constant pi.

In certain implementations, the distance d is implemented to be about½λ, where λ is the wavelength of the fundamental component of thetransmit signal. In such implementations, the second phase shifter 53 bcan be controlled to provide a phase shift of about −π cos θ radians toachieve a transmit beam angle θ.

Accordingly, the relative phase of the phase shifters 53 a, 53 b can becontrolled to provide transmit beamforming. In certain implementations,a transceiver (for example, the transceiver 45 of FIG. 3A) controlsphase values of one or more phase shifters to control beamforming.

FIG. 3C is a schematic diagram of one example of beamforming to providea receive beam. FIG. 3C is similar to FIG. 3B, except that FIG. 3Cillustrates beamforming in the context of a receive beam rather than atransmit beam.

As shown in FIG. 3C, a relative phase difference between the first phaseshifter 53 a and the second phase shifter 53 b can be selected to aboutequal to −2πf(d/v)cos θ radians to achieve a desired receive beam angleθ. In implementations in which the distance d corresponds to about ½λ,the phase difference can be selected to about equal to −π cos θ radiansto achieve a receive beam angle θ.

Although various equations for phase values to provide beamforming havebeen provided, other phase selection values are possible, such as phasevalues selected based on implementation of an antenna array,implementation of signal conditioning circuits, and/or a radioenvironment.

FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF system 60with dynamic antenna array management. The RF system 60 includes anantenna array 2, signal conditioning circuits 4 a, 4 b . . . 4 m, signalgeneration circuits 56 a, 56 b . . . 56 m, and a baseband processor 57.

The RF system 60 of FIG. 4A is similar to the RF system 10 of FIG. 2A,except that the RF system 60 of FIG. 4A includes signal generationcircuits 56 a, 56 b . . . 56 m and a baseband processor 57 that includesan antenna array management circuit 58. Although shown as being includedin the baseband processor 57, the antenna array management circuit 58can be in any suitable location.

In the illustrated embodiment, the signal generation circuits 56 a, 56 b. . . 56 m are coupled to corresponding signal conditioning circuits 4a, 4 b . . . 4 m, respectively. Accordingly, in this embodiment, signalgeneration circuits and signal conditioning circuits are one-to-one inratio. However, other implementations are possible, such asconfigurations in which a signal generation circuit is shared bymultiple signal conditioning circuits.

As shown in FIG. 4A, the baseband processor 57 communicates digitalin-phase (I) and quadrature-phase (Q) signals with the signal generationcircuits 56 a, 56 b . . . 56 m. The baseband processor 57 also generatessignal generation enable signals ENSG₁, ENSG₂ . . . ENSG_(m). In certainimplementations, signal generation circuits are individually controlledto further enhance power management.

FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF system 70with dynamic antenna array management. The RF system 70 includes anantenna array 2, signal conditioning circuits 4 a, 4 b . . . 4 m, signalgeneration circuits 66 a, 66 b . . . 66 m and a baseband processor 57.

The RF system 70 of FIG. 4B is similar to the RF system 60 of FIG. 4A,except that the RF system 70 illustrates a specific implementation ofsignal generation circuits. In particular, the signal generationcircuits 66 a, 66 b . . . 66 m of FIG. 4B include I/Q modulators 67 a,67 b . . . 67 m and I/Q demodulators 68 a, 68 b . . . 68 m,respectively.

Although the signal generation circuits 66 a, 66 b . . . 66 m of FIG. 4Billustrate one example of signaling generation circuits for atransceiver, other implementations are possible.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an RF system 80with dynamic antenna array management. The RF system 80 includes anantenna array 82 including antenna elements 3 a 1, 3 a 2 . . . 3 aj, 3 b1, 3 b 2 . . . 3 bk, 3 m 1, 3 m 2 . . . 3 ml. Additionally, the RFsystem 80 includes signal conditioning circuits 4 a 1, 4 a 2 . . . 4 aj,4 b 1, 4 b 2 . . . 4 bk, 4 m 1, 4 m 2 . . . 4 ml. Furthermore, the RFsystem 80 includes a baseband processor 57 and signal generationcircuits 76 a, 76 b . . . 76 m. In certain implementations, j, k, l, andm are integers greater than 1, of the same or different values.

As shown in FIG. 5, the antenna array management circuit 58 generatesenable signals ENSG₁, ENSG₂ . . . ENSG_(m) for the signal generationcircuits 76 a, 76 b . . . 76 m, respectively. Additionally, the antennaarray management circuit 58 generates enable signals EN_(a1), EN_(a2) .. . EN_(aj) for the signal conditioning circuits 4 a 1, 4 a 2 . . . 4aj, respectively. Furthermore, the antenna array management circuit 58generates enable signals EN_(b1), EN_(b2) . . . EN_(bk) for the signalconditioning circuits 4 b 1, 4 b 2 . . . 4 bk, respectively.Additionally, the antenna array management circuit 58 generates enablesignals EN_(m1), EN_(m2) . . . EN_(ml) for the signal conditioningcircuits 4 m 1, 4 m 2 . . . 4 ml, respectively.

The RF system 80 of FIG. 5 is similar to the RF system 60 of FIG. 4A,except the RF system 80 illustrates an implementation in which multiplesignal conditioning circuits are controlled by a common signalgeneration circuit. Implementing an RF system with shared signalgeneration circuitry can reduce power, complexity, component number,and/or cost relative to an implementation in which each signalconditioning circuit includes a dedicated signal generation circuit.

FIGS. 6A-6C are schematic diagrams of three examples of activatedantenna elements of an antenna array. The three examples are illustratedfor an implementation of a dynamically controlled 4×4 antenna array.However, the teachings herein are applicable to other array sizes.

FIG. 6A illustrates an antenna configuration 201 in which all antennaelements of the 4×4 array are activated (designated with an “A”).Implementing the array in this manner can provide a focused beam thatmay have the best range to establish radio frequency communicationsand/or which may have a highest data rate when the other device isin-line with the beam.

FIG. 6B illustrates an antenna configuration 202 in which the inner 4antenna elements of the 4×4 array are activated (designated with an“A”), and the outer antenna elements are deactivated (designated with an“X”).

By deactivating the outer antenna elements via disabling correspondingsignal conditioning circuits, the beam generated by the antenna arraybecomes defocused relative to the antenna configuration 201 of FIG. 6A.The inventor has recognized that although a focused beam may exhibit thegreatest range, a focused beam may also exhibit the least or relativelypoor ability to establish a communication channel with another devicethat is not centered on the beam path.

Accordingly, by controlling which antenna elements are activated in anantenna array, a desired trade-off between a communication range and anoff-beam capture of the antenna array can be realized.

FIG. 6C illustrates an antenna configuration 203 in which the 4 cornerantenna elements of the 4×4 array are activated (designated with an“A”), and the remaining elements are deactivated (designated with an“X”). The antenna configuration 203 illustrates another example of anarray configuration that is de-focused relative to the antennaconfiguration 201 of FIG. 6A.

FIG. 7A is a perspective view of one embodiment of a module 300 withdynamic antenna array management. FIG. 7B is a cross-section of themodule 300 of FIG. 7A taken along the lines 7B-7B.

The module 300 includes a laminated substrate or laminate 301, asemiconductor die or IC 302 and (not visible in FIG. 7A), and an antennaarray including patch antenna elements 311-326. Although an example withpatch antenna elements is illustrated, the teachings herein areapplicable to antenna elements implemented in a wide variety of ways.For instance, examples of antenna elements include, but are not limitedto, patch antennas, dipole antennas, ceramic resonators, stamped metalantennas, and/or laser direct structuring antennas.

Although not shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the module 300 can includeadditional structures and components that have been omitted from thefigures for clarity.

The patch antenna elements 311-326 are formed on a first surface of thelaminate 301, and can be used to transmit and/or receive signals.Although the illustrated patch antenna elements 311-326 are rectangular,the patch antenna elements can be shaped in other ways. Additionally,although a 4×4 array of antenna elements is shown, more or fewer patchantenna elements are possible. Moreover, antenna elements can be arrayedin other patterns or configurations, including, for instance, lineararrays and/or arrays using non-uniform arrangements of antenna elements.In certain embodiments, multiple patch antenna arrays are provided, suchas separate patch antenna arrays for transmit and receive.

In the illustrated embodiment, the IC 302 is on a second surface of thelaminate 301 opposite the first surface.

In certain implementations, the IC 302 includes a transceiver and/orsignal conditioning circuits associated with the patch antenna elements311-326. Although an implementation with one semiconductor chip isshown, the teachings herein are applicable to implementations withadditional chips as well as to implementations without chips.

Accordingly, the IC 302 can control the number of active antennaelements. In one embodiment, the IC 302 includes an interface, such as aMobile Industry Processor Interface (MIPI) and/or a general-purposeinput/output (GPIO) interface that receive data for controllingselection of the particular antenna elements that are active.

The laminate 301 can include various including, for example, conductivelayers, dielectric layers, and/or solder masks. The number of layers,layer thicknesses, and materials used to form the layers can be selectedbased on a wide variety of factors, and can vary with application and/orimplementation. The laminate 301 can include vias for providingelectrical connections to signal feeds and/or ground feeds of the patchantenna elements 311-326. For example, in certain implementations, viascan aid in providing electrical connections between signalingconditioning circuits of the IC 302 and corresponding patch antennaelements.

FIG. 8A is a schematic diagram of one example of a wireless network. Thewireless network includes a network access point 401 (for instance, abase station or mounted network access device) that includes adynamically managed antenna array 402. The wireless network furtherincludes a first mobile communications device 411 and a second mobilecommunications device 412. In certain implementations, the first mobilecommunication device 411 and/or the second mobile communication device412 include a dynamically managed antenna array, which can be the sameor different size than the dynamically managed antenna array 402.

In FIG. 8A, the network access point 401 is in communication with thefirst mobile communications device 411 via a first beam 421, which isrelatively focused for long range communication and/or highcommunication rates.

FIG. 8B is schematic diagram of another example of a wireless network.

The wireless network of FIG. 8B is similar to the wireless network ofFIG. 8A, except that the network access point 401 has deactivatedantenna elements to provide a second beam 422 that is defocused.

Although a focused beam may have the best range to establish radiofrequency communications, such a focused beam may also exhibit the leastability to establish a communication channel with another device that isnot centered on the beam path. Thus, the focused beam 421 of FIG. 8A maysuitable for long range line-of-sight communications, while the secondbroad beam 422 may be suitable for short range communications withoff-beam devices.

Although two examples of beam focuses are shown, the degree of beamfocus by an antenna array can include additional settings or amounts offocus. For example, dynamically antenna element control can be used tocontrol a beam in a wide variety of ways.

FIG. 9A is a schematic diagram of an RF system 500 with dynamic antennaarray management and power amplifier output tuning compensationaccording to one embodiment. The RF system 500 includes an antenna array2, signal conditioning circuits 15 a′, 15 b′ . . . 15 m′, an antennaarray management circuit 6, and a power amplifier output tuning controlcircuit 7.

Although an embodiment with three antenna elements and correspondingsignal conditioning circuits is shown, an RF system can more or fewerantenna elements and/or signal conditioning circuits as indicated by theellipses.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 9A, each of the signal conditioningcircuits includes a power amplifier and an LNA. For example, the signalconditioning circuit 15 a′ includes a power amplifier 17 a′ and an LNA18 a, the signal conditioning circuit 15 b′ includes a power amplifier17 b′ and an LNA 18 b, and the signal conditioning circuit 15 m′includes a power amplifier 17 m′ and an LNA 18 m.

Although an example of signaling conditioning circuits with poweramplifiers and LNAs is shown, other implementations of signalingconditioning circuits are possible. For example, a signalingconditioning circuit can include additional circuitry, including, forexample, switches, phase shifters, and/or other components.

As shown in FIG. 9A, the antenna array management circuit 6 generatesenable signals EN₁, EN₂ . . . EN_(m) for individually controllingactivation of the signal conditioning circuits 15 a′, 15 b′ . . . 15 m′,respectively.

Accordingly, the antenna array management circuit 6 dynamically managesthe antenna array 2 by selectively enabling the signaling conditioningcircuits 15 a′, 15 b′ . . . 15 m′. By controlling the number and patternof active antenna elements, the shape of the beam is controlled. Thus,the antenna array management circuit 6 controls a trade-off betweenpower consumption, off-beam capture, and RF communication range/rate.

As shown in FIG. 9A, the RF system 500 further includes the poweramplifier output tuning control circuit 7, which generates tuningcontrol signals TUNE₁, TUNE₂ . . . TUNE_(m) based on the enable signalsEN₁, EN₂ . . . EN_(m) and/or a beam angle signal indicating the beamangle.

When a particular pattern of active elements of the antenna array 2 isselected and/or a beam is steered at a particular angle, impedancematching at an output of one or more of the power amplifiers 17 a′, 17b′ . . . 17 m′ can be impacted.

In the illustrated embodiment, each of the power amplifiers includes atunable output impedance circuit. For example, the power amplifier 17 a′includes a tunable output impedance circuit 19 a, the power amplifier 17b′ includes a tunable output impedance circuit 19 b, and the poweramplifier 17 m′ includes a tunable output impedance circuit 19 m. Thetuning control signals TUNE₁, TUNE₂ . . . TUNE_(m) are operable to tunethe tunable output impedance circuits 19 a, 19 b . . . 19 m,respectively.

By compensating an output impedance of the power amplifiers 17 a′, 17 b′. . . 17 m′ based on beam angle and/or a pattern of activated antennaelements, enhanced transmit performance can be achieved.

The antenna array management circuit 6 and/or the power amplifier outputtuning control circuit 7 can be implemented in a wide variety of ways.In one example, the antenna array management circuit 6 and the poweramplifier output tuning control circuit 7 are included in a transceiver.In another example, the antenna array management circuit 6 and the poweramplifier output tuning control circuit 7 are included in a basebandprocessor.

FIG. 9B is a schematic diagram of one example of a tunable poweramplifier 510. The tunable power amplifier 510 illustrates one exampleof a power amplifier that can be included in a signal condition circuit,such as the signal conditions circuits 15 a′, 15 b′ . . . 15 m′ of FIG.9A. Although FIG. 9B illustrate one example of a tunable power amplifiersuitable for use in a signal condition circuit, a signal conditioningcircuit can be implemented with other implementations of poweramplifiers.

The tunable power amplifier 510 includes a bipolar transistor 501, achoke inductor 502, a bias circuit 503, and a tunable output impedancecircuit 504.

The bipolar transistor 501 includes an emitter electrically connected toa reference voltage (for instance ground), a base that receives an RFinput signal RF_(IN) and a bias signal, and an emitter than generates anamplified RF output signal RF_(OUT). Although a bipolar transistorimplementation is shown, a power amplifier can be implemented in otherways, including, for example, using field-effect transistors.

As shown in FIG. 9B, the bias circuit 503 generates a bias signal for abase of the bipolar transistor 501. In the illustrated embodiment, thebias circuit 503 biases the bipolar transistor 501 by controlling a basecurrent and/or a base-emitter voltage of the bipolar transistor 501. Thebias circuit 503 receives an enable signal EN, in this example, whichcan be used by the bias circuit 503 to bias the bipolar transistor 501on or off to selectively activate the power amplifier 510. The enablesignal EN is controlled by an antenna array management circuit.

The choke inductor 502 operates to provide the power amplifier supplyvoltage V_(CC) to the bipolar transistor 501 to thereby supply the poweramplifier 510 with a power supply. For example, the choke inductor 502can be used to provide low impedance to low frequency signal components,while choking or blocking high frequency signal components associatedwith the RF output signal RF_(OUT). The choke inductor 502 can alsocontribute in part to provide output impedance matching, harmonictermination, and/or controlling load line impedance. In certainimplementations, the power amplifier supply voltage V_(CC) is generatedby a power management circuit (for example, the power management circuit805 of FIG. 11), which can include, for example, a DC-to-DC converterand/or other suitable power management circuitry.

The tunable output impedance circuit 504 controls an electricaltermination of the power amplifier 510 and/or controls a load lineimpedance at the fundamental frequency of the RF input signal RF_(IN).In certain implementations, the tunable output impedance circuit 504 canprovide an impedance transformation and/or provide harmonic terminationto the power amplifier 510.

As shown in FIG. 9B, the tunable output impedance circuit 504 is tunableby a tuning signal TUNE, which is generated by a power amplifier outputtuning control circuit (for example, the power amplifier output tuningcontrol circuit 7 of FIG. 9A).

In certain embodiments, the tunable output impedance circuit 504includes a controllable capacitance component, such as a variable and/orprogrammable capacitor. For example, the tunable output impedancecircuit 504 can include a bank of capacitors that are individuallyselectable by switches and that operate in parallel with one anotherwhen selected. Although an example with a tunable capacitance has beendescribed, other implementations are possible, including, for example,tunable output impedance circuits that operate without varyingcapacitance.

The tuning signal TUNE can be a digital tuning signal and/or an analogtuning signal. Thus, the tunable output impedance circuit 504 caninclude analog and/or digital tuning or programmability.

FIG. 9C is a schematic diagram of another example of a tunable poweramplifier 520. The tunable power amplifier 520 illustrates anotherexample of a power amplifier that can be included in a signal conditioncircuit, such as the signal conditions circuits 15 a′, 15 b′ . . . 15 m′of FIG. 9A. Although FIG. 9C illustrates an example of a tunable poweramplifier suitable for use in a signal condition circuit, a signalconditioning circuit can be implemented with other implementations ofpower amplifiers.

The tunable power amplifier 520 includes a bipolar transistor 501, achoke inductor 502, a bias circuit 503, and a tunable output impedancecircuit 505. The tunable power amplifier 520 of FIG. 9C is similar tothe tunable power amplifier 510 of FIG. 9A, except that the tunablepower amplifier 520 includes a series tunable impedance circuit ratherthan a shunt tunable impedance circuit. Tunable impedance can beprovided in a wide variety of ways, including, for example, using seriesand/or shunt tuning circuits.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an RF system 550 with dynamic antennaarray management and low noise amplifier input tuning compensationaccording to one embodiment. The RF system 550 includes an antenna array2, signal conditioning circuits 15 a″, 15 b″ . . . 15 m″, an antennaarray management circuit 6, and an LNA input tuning control circuit 8.

Although an embodiment with three antenna elements and correspondingsignal conditioning circuits is shown, an RF system can more or fewerantenna elements and/or signal conditioning circuits as indicated by theellipses.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 10, each of the signal conditioningcircuits includes a power amplifier and an LNA. For example, the signalconditioning circuit 15 a″ includes a power amplifier 17 a and an LNA 18a′, the signal conditioning circuit 15 b″ includes a power amplifier 17b and an LNA 18 b′, and the signal conditioning circuit 15 m″ includes apower amplifier 17 m and an LNA 18 m′.

Although an example of signaling conditioning circuits with poweramplifiers and LNAs is shown, other implementations of signalingconditioning circuits are possible. For example, a signalingconditioning circuit can include additional circuitry, including, forexample, switches, phase shifters, and/or other components.

As shown in FIG. 10, the antenna array management circuit 6 generatesenable signals EN₁, EN₂ . . . EN_(m) for individually controllingactivation of the signal conditioning circuits 15 a″, 15 b″ . . . 15 m″,respectively.

Accordingly, the antenna array management circuit 6 dynamically managesthe antenna array 2 by selectively enabling the signaling conditioningcircuits 15 a″, 15 b″ . . . 15 m″. By controlling the number and patternof active antenna elements, the shape of the beam is controlled. Thus,the antenna array management circuit 6 controls a trade-off betweenpower consumption, off-beam capture, and RF communication range/rate.

As shown in FIG. 10, the RF system 550 further includes the LNA inputtuning control circuit 8, which generates tuning control signals TUNE₁,TUNE₂ . . . TUNE_(m) based on the enable signals EN₁, EN₂ . . . EN_(m)and/or a beam angle signal indicating the beam angle.

When a particular pattern of active elements of the antenna array 2 isselected and/or a beam is steered at a particular angle, impedancematching at an input of one or more of the LNAs 18 a′, 18 b′ . . . 18 m′can be impacted.

In the illustrated embodiment, each of the LNAs includes a tunable inputimpedance circuit. For example, the LNA 18 a′ includes a tunable inputimpedance circuit 21 a, the LNA 18 b′ includes a tunable input impedancecircuit 21 b, and the LNA 18 m′ includes a tunable input impedancecircuit 21 m. The tuning control signals TUNE₁, TUNE₂ . . . TUNE_(m) areoperable to tune the tunable input impedance circuits 21 a, 21 b . . .21 m, respectively. The tunable input impedance circuits can beimplemented in a wide variety of ways, including, for example, usingseries and/or shunt tuning circuits that operate with tunablecapacitance and/or other tuning.

By compensating an input impedance of the LNAs 18 a′, 18 b′ . . . 18 m′based on beam angle and/or a pattern of activated antenna elements,enhanced transmit performance can be achieved.

The antenna array management circuit 6 and/or the LNA input tuningcontrol circuit 8 can be implemented in a wide variety of ways. In oneexample, the antenna array management circuit 6 and the LNA input tuningcontrol circuit 8 are included in a transceiver. In another example, theantenna array management circuit 6 and the LNA input tuning controlcircuit 8 are included in a baseband processor.

In certain embodiments, herein an RF system can include both a poweramplifier output tuning control circuit and an LNA input tuning controlcircuit. For example, an RF system can include both the PA output tuningcontrol circuit 7 of FIG. 9A and the LNA input tuning control circuit 8of FIG. 10, with the signal conditioning circuits implemented withassociated tunable impedance circuits.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a mobile device 800.The mobile device 800 includes a baseband system 801, a transceiver 802,a front end system 803, antennas 804, a power management system 805, amemory 806, a user interface 807, and a battery 808.

The mobile device 800 can be used communicate using a wide variety ofcommunications technologies, including, but not limited to, 2G, 3G, 4G(including LTE, LTE-Advanced, and LTE-Advanced Pro), 5G NR, WLAN (forinstance, Wi-Fi), WPAN (for instance, Bluetooth and ZigBee), WMAN (forinstance, WiMax), and/or GPS technologies.

The transceiver 802 generates RF signals for transmission and processesincoming RF signals received from the antennas 804. It will beunderstood that various functionalities associated with the transmissionand receiving of RF signals can be achieved by one or more componentsthat are collectively represented in FIG. 11 as the transceiver 802. Inone example, separate components (for instance, separate circuits ordies) can be provided for handling certain types of RF signals. Incertain implementations, the transceiver 802 includes at least one anantenna array management circuit, a power amplifier output tuningcontrol circuit, or an LNA input tuning control circuit.

The front end system 803 aids is conditioning signals transmitted toand/or received from the antennas 804. In the illustrated embodiment,the front end system 803 includes phase shifters 810, power amplifiers(PAs) 811, low noise amplifiers (LNAs) 812, filters 813, switches 814,and duplexers 815. Thus, the front end system 803 includes the signalconditioning circuits, in this embodiment.

Although one embodiment of a front end system is shown in FIG. 11, otherimplementations are possible. For example, the front end system 803 canprovide a number of functionalities, including, but not limited to,amplifying signals for transmission, amplifying received signals,filtering signals, switching between different bands, switching betweendifferent power modes, switching between transmission and receivingmodes, duplexing of signals, multiplexing of signals (for instance,diplexing or triplexing), or some combination thereof.

In certain implementations, the mobile device 800 supports carrieraggregation, thereby providing flexibility to increase peak data rates.Carrier aggregation can be used for both Frequency Division Duplexing(FDD) and Time Division Duplexing (TDD), and may be used to aggregate aplurality of carriers or channels. Carrier aggregation includescontiguous aggregation, in which contiguous carriers within the sameoperating frequency band are aggregated. Carrier aggregation can also benon-contiguous, and can include carriers separated in frequency within acommon band or in different bands.

The antennas 804 can include antennas used for a wide variety of typesof communications. For example, the antennas 804 can include antennasfor transmitting and/or receiving signals associated with a wide varietyof frequencies and communications standards.

In certain implementations, the antennas 804 support MIMO communicationsand/or switched diversity communications. For example, MIMOcommunications use multiple antennas for communicating multiple datastreams over a single radio frequency channel. MIMO communicationsbenefit from higher signal to noise ratio, improved coding, and/orreduced signal interference due to spatial multiplexing differences ofthe radio environment. Switched diversity refers to communications inwhich a particular antenna is selected for operation at a particulartime. For example, a switch can be used to select a particular antennafrom a group of antennas based on a variety of factors, such as anobserved bit error rate and/or a signal strength indicator.

The mobile device 800 can operate with beamforming in certainimplementations. For example, the front end system 803 can include phaseshifters having variable phase controlled by the transceiver 802.Additionally, the phase shifters are controlled to provide beamformation and directivity for transmission and/or reception of signalsusing the antennas 804. For example, in the context of signaltransmission, the phases of the transmit signals provided to theantennas 804 are controlled such that radiated signals from the antennas804 combine using constructive and destructive interference to generatean aggregate transmit signal exhibiting beam-like qualities with moresignal strength propagating in a given direction. In the context ofsignal reception, the phases are controlled such that more signal energyis received when the signal is arriving to the antennas 804 from aparticular direction. In certain implementations, the antennas 804include one or more arrays of antenna elements to enhance beamforming.

The baseband system 801 is coupled to the user interface 807 tofacilitate processing of various user input and output (I/O), such asvoice and data. The baseband system 801 provides the transceiver 802with digital representations of transmit signals, which the transceiver802 processes to generate RF signals for transmission. The basebandsystem 801 also processes digital representations of received signalsprovided by the transceiver 802. As shown in FIG. 11, the basebandsystem 801 is coupled to the memory 806 of facilitate operation of themobile device 800. In certain implementations, the baseband system 801includes at least one an antenna array management circuit, a poweramplifier output tuning control circuit, or an LNA input tuning controlcircuit.

The memory 806 can be used for a wide variety of purposes, such asstoring data and/or instructions to facilitate the operation of themobile device 800 and/or to provide storage of user information.

The power management system 805 provides a number of power managementfunctions of the mobile device 800. In certain implementations, thepower management system 805 includes a PA supply control circuit thatcontrols the supply voltages of the power amplifiers 811. For example,the power management system 805 can be configured to change the supplyvoltage(s) provided to one or more of the power amplifiers 811 toimprove efficiency, such as power added efficiency (PAE).

As shown in FIG. 11, the power management system 805 receives a batteryvoltage from the battery 808. The battery 808 can be any suitablebattery for use in the mobile device 800, including, for example, alithium-ion battery.

FIG. 12A is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a packaged module900. FIG. 12B is a schematic diagram of a cross-section of the packagedmodule 900 of FIG. 12A taken along the lines 12B-12B.

The packaged module 900 includes radio frequency components 901, asemiconductor die 902, surface mount devices 903, wirebonds 908, apackage substrate 920, and an encapsulation structure 940. The packagesubstrate 920 includes pads 906 formed from conductors disposed therein.Additionally, the semiconductor die 902 includes pins or pads 904, andthe wirebonds 908 have been used to connect the pads 904 of the die 902to the pads 906 of the package substrate 920.

The semiconductor die 902 includes at least one of an antenna arraymanagement circuit 945 or signal conditioning circuits 946 implementedin accordance with one or more features disclosed herein. In certainimplementations, the semiconductor die 902 further includes at least oneof a power amplifier output tuning control circuit or an LNA inputtuning control circuit.

The packaging substrate 920 can be configured to receive a plurality ofcomponents such as radio frequency components 901, the semiconductor die902 and the surface mount devices 903, which can include, for example,surface mount capacitors and/or inductors. In one implementation, theradio frequency components 901 include integrated passive devices(IPDs).

As shown in FIG. 12B, the packaged module 900 is shown to include aplurality of contact pads 932 disposed on the side of the packagedmodule 900 opposite the side used to mount the semiconductor die 902.Configuring the packaged module 900 in this manner can aid in connectingthe packaged module 900 to a circuit board, such as a phone board of amobile device. The example contact pads 932 can be configured to provideradio frequency signals, bias signals, and/or power (for example, apower supply voltage and ground) to the semiconductor die 902 and/orother components. As shown in FIG. 12B, the electrical connectionsbetween the contact pads 932 and the semiconductor die 902 can befacilitated by connections 933 through the package substrate 920. Theconnections 933 can represent electrical paths formed through thepackage substrate 920, such as connections associated with vias andconductors of a multilayer laminated package substrate.

In some embodiments, the packaged module 900 can also include one ormore packaging structures to, for example, provide protection and/orfacilitate handling. Such a packaging structure can include overmold orencapsulation structure 940 formed over the packaging substrate 920 andthe components and die(s) disposed thereon.

It will be understood that although the packaged module 900 is describedin the context of electrical connections based on wirebonds, one or morefeatures of the present disclosure can also be implemented in otherpackaging configurations, including, for example, flip-chipconfigurations.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a cross-section of another embodimentof a packaged module 950. The packaged module 950 includes a laminatedpackage substrate 951 and a flip-chip die 952.

The laminated package substrate 951 includes a cavity-based antenna 958associated with an air cavity 960, a first conductor 961, a secondconductor 962. The laminated package substrate 951 further includes aplanar antenna 959.

In certain implementations herein, a packaged module includes one ormore integrated antennas. For example, the packaged module 950 of FIG.13 includes the cavity-based antenna 958 and the planar antenna 959.Although one example of a packaged module with integrated antennas isshown, the teachings herein are applicable to modules implemented in awide variety of ways.

In certain embodiments, a packaged module includes a first array ofantenna elements on a major surface of the module, and a second array ofantenna elements on an edge of the module. For example, the first arrayof antenna elements can correspond to an array of patch antennas, andthe second array of antenna elements can correspond to an array ofcavity-based antennas. The first array and/or second array can bedynamically managed in accordance with the teachings herein.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of a module 1020with dynamic antenna array management. The module 1020 includes alaminated substrate 1010 and a semiconductor die 1012.

As shown in FIG. 14, the semiconductor die 1012 is attached to a majorsurface 1021 of the laminated substrate 1010. The semiconductor die 1012includes at least one of an antenna array management circuit 1045 orsignal conditioning circuits 1046 implemented in accordance with one ormore features disclosed herein. In certain implementations, thesemiconductor die 1012 further includes at least one of a poweramplifier output tuning control circuit or an LNA input tuning controlcircuit.

In the illustrated the embodiment, cavity-based antennas 1011 a-1011 phave been formed on an edge 1022 of the laminated substrate 1010. Inthis example, sixteen cavity-based antennas have been provided in afour-by-four (4×4) array. However, more or fewer antennas can beincluded and/or antennas can be arrayed in other patterns.

In another embodiment, the laminated substrate 1010 further includeanother antenna array (for example, a patch antenna array) formed on asecond major surface of the laminated substrate 1010 opposite the firstmajor surface 1021. Implementing the module 1020 aids in increasing arange of angles over which the module 1020 can communicate.

The module 1020 illustrates another embodiment of a module including anarray of antennas that are dynamically managed to control a trade-offbetween power consumption, off-beam capture, and communicationrange/rate. Although an example with cavity-based antennas is shown, theteachings herein are applicable to implementations using other types ofantennas.

Applications

Some of the embodiments described above have provided examples ofdynamic antenna array management in connection with wirelesscommunications devices. However, the principles and advantages of theembodiments can be used for any other systems or apparatus that benefitfrom any of the circuits and systems described herein.

For example, dynamically managed antenna arrays can be included invarious electronic devices, including, but not limited to consumerelectronic products, parts of the consumer electronic products,electronic test equipment, etc. Example electronic devices include, butare not limited to, a base station, a wireless network access point, amobile phone (for instance, a smartphone), a tablet, a television, acomputer monitor, a computer, a hand-held computer, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), a microwave, a refrigerator, an automobile, a stereosystem, a disc player, a digital camera, a portable memory chip, awasher, a dryer, a copier, a facsimile machine, a scanner, amulti-functional peripheral device, a wrist watch, a clock, etc.Further, the electronic devices can include unfinished products.

CONCLUSION

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout thedescription and the claims, the words “comprise,” “comprising,” and thelike are to be construed in an inclusive sense, as opposed to anexclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in the sense of“including, but not limited to.” The word “coupled”, as generally usedherein, refers to two or more elements that may be either directlyconnected, or connected by way of one or more intermediate elements.Likewise, the word “connected”, as generally used herein, refers to twoor more elements that may be either directly connected, or connected byway of one or more intermediate elements. Additionally, the words“herein,” “above,” “below,” and words of similar import, when used inthis application, shall refer to this application as a whole and not toany particular portions of this application. Where the context permits,words in the above Detailed Description using the singular or pluralnumber may also include the plural or singular number respectively. Theword “or” in reference to a list of two or more items, that word coversall of the following interpretations of the word: any of the items inthe list, all of the items in the list, and any combination of the itemsin the list.

Moreover, conditional language used herein, such as, among others,“can,” “could,” “might,” “can,” “e.g.,” “for example,” “such as” and thelike, unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understoodwithin the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certainembodiments include, while other embodiments do not include, certainfeatures, elements and/or states. Thus, such conditional language is notgenerally intended to imply that features, elements and/or states are inany way required for one or more embodiments or that one or moreembodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or withoutauthor input or prompting, whether these features, elements and/orstates are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment.

The above detailed description of embodiments of the invention is notintended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise formdisclosed above. While specific embodiments of, and examples for, theinvention are described above for illustrative purposes, variousequivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the invention,as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize. For example, whileprocesses or blocks are presented in a given order, alternativeembodiments may perform routines having steps, or employ systems havingblocks, in a different order, and some processes or blocks may bedeleted, moved, added, subdivided, combined, and/or modified. Each ofthese processes or blocks may be implemented in a variety of differentways. Also, while processes or blocks are at times shown as beingperformed in series, these processes or blocks may instead be performedin parallel, or may be performed at different times.

The teachings of the invention provided herein can be applied to othersystems, not necessarily the system described above. The elements andacts of the various embodiments described above can be combined toprovide further embodiments.

While certain embodiments of the inventions have been described, theseembodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are notintended to limit the scope of the disclosure. Indeed, the novel methodsand systems described herein may be embodied in a variety of otherforms; furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in theform of the methods and systems described herein may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit of the disclosure. The accompanying claims andtheir equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications aswould fall within the scope and spirit of the disclosure.

1. (canceled)
 2. A radio frequency system comprising: an antenna array including a plurality of antenna elements; a plurality of signal conditioning circuits, each signal conditioning circuit including a power amplifier and each operatively associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of antenna elements; an antenna array management circuit configured to generate a plurality of enable signals each operable to individually control activation of a corresponding one of the plurality of signal conditioning circuits to dynamically activate a subset of the signal conditioning circuits and a corresponding pattern of activated antenna elements; and tuning control circuitry configured to dynamically tune an output impedance of the power amplifiers in the activated signal conditioning circuits based on the pattern of activated antenna elements, a beam angle, or both.
 3. The radio frequency system of claim 2 wherein the plurality of enable signals are operable to control an amount of beam focus of the antenna array.
 4. The radio frequency system of claim 2 wherein the plurality of enable signals are operable to control a trade-off between a communication range of the antenna array and an off-beam capture of the antenna array.
 5. The radio frequency system of claim 2 wherein each of the plurality of signal conditioning circuits includes a low noise amplifier.
 6. The radio frequency system of claim 2 wherein the radio frequency system further includes a low noise amplifier input tuning control circuit configured to tune an input impedance of the low noise amplifiers in the activated signal conditioning circuits based on the pattern of activated antenna elements, a beam angle, or both.
 7. The radio frequency system of claim 2 wherein the antenna array management circuit controls a state of the plurality of enable signals based on one or more inputs indicative of a communication link of the antenna array.
 8. The radio frequency system of claim 2 wherein the one or more inputs includes at least one of an achieved data rate of the communication link, an observed error rate of the communication link, a receive signal strength indicator, or an indicator of geo-positioning.
 9. A module for a communications device, the module comprising: a laminated substrate; an antenna array formed on the laminated substrate, the antenna array including a plurality of antenna elements; and a semiconductor die attached to the laminated substrate and including a plurality of signal conditioning circuits, each signal conditioning circuit including a power amplifier and operatively associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of antenna elements, the semiconductor die further including an antenna array management circuit configured to generate a plurality of enable signals each operable to individually control activation of a corresponding one of the plurality of signal conditioning circuits to dynamically activate a subset of the signal conditioning circuits and a corresponding pattern of activated antenna elements, and the semiconductor die further including tuning control circuitry configured to dynamically tune an output impedance of the power amplifiers in the activated signal conditioning circuits based on the pattern of activated antenna elements, a beam angle, or both.
 10. The module of claim 9 wherein the plurality of enable signals are operable to control an amount of beam focus of the antenna array.
 11. The module of claim 10 wherein the plurality of enable signals are operable to control a trade-off between a communication range of the antenna array and an off-beam capture of the antenna array.
 12. The module of claim 9 wherein each of the plurality of signal conditioning circuits includes a low noise amplifier.
 13. The module of claim 9 wherein the semiconductor die further includes a low noise amplifier input tuning control circuit configured to tune an input impedance of the low noise amplifiers in the activated signal conditioning circuits based on the pattern of activated antenna elements, a beam angle, or both.
 14. The module of claim 9 wherein the antenna array management circuit controls a state of the plurality of enable signals based on one or more inputs indicative of a communication link of the antenna array.
 15. The module of claim 14 wherein the one or more inputs includes at least one of an achieved data rate of the communication link, an observed error rate of the communication link, a receive signal strength indicator, or an indicator of geo-positioning.
 16. The module of claim 9 wherein the antenna array is formed on a first surface of the laminated substrate, and the semiconductor die is attached to a second surface of the laminated substrate opposite the first surface.
 17. The module of claim 9 wherein the semiconductor die is attached to a major surface of the laminated substrate, and the antenna array includes a plurality of cavity-based antennas along an edge of the laminated substrate.
 18. A method of antenna array management, the method comprising: using a plurality of antenna elements of an antenna array for wirelessly communicating a plurality of radio frequency signals, the antenna array including a plurality of antenna elements each thereof wirelessly communicating a corresponding one of the plurality of radio frequency signals; conditioning the plurality of radio frequency signals of the plurality of antenna elements using a plurality of signal conditioning circuits each thereof including a power amplifier and associated with a respective one of the plurality of radio frequency signals; generating a plurality of enable signals using an antenna array management circuit; individually controlling activation of each of the plurality of signal conditioning circuits using a corresponding one of the plurality of enable signals to control a pattern of activated antenna elements the antenna array; and dynamically tuning an output impedance of the power amplifiers in the activated signal conditioning circuits based on the pattern of activated antenna elements, a beam angle, or both.
 19. The method of claim 18 wherein controlling activation of each of the plurality of signal conditioning circuits results in controlling an amount of beam focus of the antenna array.
 20. The method of claim 18 wherein each of the plurality of signal conditioning circuits includes a low noise amplifier.
 21. The method of claim 20 further comprising tuning an input impedance of the low noise amplifiers in the activated signal conditioning circuits based on the pattern of activated antenna elements, a beam angle, or both. 